Ontario plumber hassles
November 22, 2013 1:54 PM Subscribe
Hired plumber to fix water softener. $357 later I am worse off than I was before I hired the plumber. What remedies are available to me in Ontario...?
[Forgive the long explanation and feel free to skip it -- I am including the details in case it helps anybody suggest what actions are appropriate]
At the start of October a little motor thing on my softener was wheezing and making 'I am a failing bit of machinery' noises, and then the noises stopped, and so did the little motor. I asked around on Facebook for recommendations; somebody suggested "RH" Plumbing Service of Pakenham.
My softener is pretty old and I was clear about asking whether it was worth repairing or if replacement was the way to go. I was assured that it was worth repairing. I mentioned the funny noises and subsequent lack of funny noises.
First thing from "RH" was a misdiagnosis and a big part of the bill is for emptying out the salt from the salt tank. The salt tank has always been full to the brim here and it hasn't been a problem in the operation of the softener. But I don't know a thing about softeners, so I didn't question the plumber's diagnosis of the problem.
This didn't fix anything. We had a bothersome wait for him to return and do something that would make the water softener actually work again; he replaced the thing that had stopped making noise.
Next time I went down to my basement there was water spewing out of the unit. It was leaking from three separate areas. Previously: no problems with leaks. "RH" returned, had 'never seen anything like it,' half-assed a repair with teflon tape, promised to call the manufacturer and get back to me, etc. I spent a couple of weeks with a wet basement. Then the water went back to hard water. This is a big deal with the notoriously bad water here and I had some clothes wrecked and my dishwasher is trashed (the dishwasher has developed its own leak, which I suspect, given the problems untreated water here causes for appliances, might be related to the extended spells with hard water, but anyway).
After a few ignored messages I was a bit more insistent and "RH" returned on the pretense that he could actually: fix the water softener. He was here this morning. He fixed some of the leaking issues. He did not fix the water softener. He made clear that my options were: give him more money, or buy a new softener from somebody else. The softener is totally disabled at this point, still leaking, and a brand new one would've only been $150 more from costco.ca. He was extremely angry and aggressive with no provocation and I ended up telling him to leave my house immediately. The entire ordeal was hugely unprofessional, and this morning was very distressing. I am a smallish female who was home with a sick child and his losing his temper in my kitchen was bizarrely inappropriate.
One of the scammiest parts of this is that when I went to actually inspect the part that he installed which quit working, I found it was rusty and caked with hard water deposits. He'd clearly installed an old worn-out part. Photo. (Round silver thing. You can see the old part that was removed off to the side.)
So. I have filed a complaint with the BBB, but he is not registered with them so I don't know if anything will come of that. Did make a brief inquiry to my lawyer; was warned of $175ish in fees for small claims court, year-long wait, dubious odds of recovery, many many hours to file.
I have found www.collegeoftrades.ca/public/complaints-and-discipline. Apart from that and the BBB, is there anything else to be done here? $357 is an enormous hit for me right now. The water issue is an emergency and I am getting somebody else ASAP; there isn't a 'give him another chance to make good' option. I paid (promptly, unfortunately) with a cheque, which was cashed three days ago. This has been a shit show of an autumn and I am worn out, and have limited resources to throw at this, and am open to hearing 'that sucks but let it go' if you feel it is unlikely that anything will come of pursuing things here.
[Forgive the long explanation and feel free to skip it -- I am including the details in case it helps anybody suggest what actions are appropriate]
At the start of October a little motor thing on my softener was wheezing and making 'I am a failing bit of machinery' noises, and then the noises stopped, and so did the little motor. I asked around on Facebook for recommendations; somebody suggested "RH" Plumbing Service of Pakenham.
My softener is pretty old and I was clear about asking whether it was worth repairing or if replacement was the way to go. I was assured that it was worth repairing. I mentioned the funny noises and subsequent lack of funny noises.
First thing from "RH" was a misdiagnosis and a big part of the bill is for emptying out the salt from the salt tank. The salt tank has always been full to the brim here and it hasn't been a problem in the operation of the softener. But I don't know a thing about softeners, so I didn't question the plumber's diagnosis of the problem.
This didn't fix anything. We had a bothersome wait for him to return and do something that would make the water softener actually work again; he replaced the thing that had stopped making noise.
Next time I went down to my basement there was water spewing out of the unit. It was leaking from three separate areas. Previously: no problems with leaks. "RH" returned, had 'never seen anything like it,' half-assed a repair with teflon tape, promised to call the manufacturer and get back to me, etc. I spent a couple of weeks with a wet basement. Then the water went back to hard water. This is a big deal with the notoriously bad water here and I had some clothes wrecked and my dishwasher is trashed (the dishwasher has developed its own leak, which I suspect, given the problems untreated water here causes for appliances, might be related to the extended spells with hard water, but anyway).
After a few ignored messages I was a bit more insistent and "RH" returned on the pretense that he could actually: fix the water softener. He was here this morning. He fixed some of the leaking issues. He did not fix the water softener. He made clear that my options were: give him more money, or buy a new softener from somebody else. The softener is totally disabled at this point, still leaking, and a brand new one would've only been $150 more from costco.ca. He was extremely angry and aggressive with no provocation and I ended up telling him to leave my house immediately. The entire ordeal was hugely unprofessional, and this morning was very distressing. I am a smallish female who was home with a sick child and his losing his temper in my kitchen was bizarrely inappropriate.
One of the scammiest parts of this is that when I went to actually inspect the part that he installed which quit working, I found it was rusty and caked with hard water deposits. He'd clearly installed an old worn-out part. Photo. (Round silver thing. You can see the old part that was removed off to the side.)
So. I have filed a complaint with the BBB, but he is not registered with them so I don't know if anything will come of that. Did make a brief inquiry to my lawyer; was warned of $175ish in fees for small claims court, year-long wait, dubious odds of recovery, many many hours to file.
I have found www.collegeoftrades.ca/public/complaints-and-discipline. Apart from that and the BBB, is there anything else to be done here? $357 is an enormous hit for me right now. The water issue is an emergency and I am getting somebody else ASAP; there isn't a 'give him another chance to make good' option. I paid (promptly, unfortunately) with a cheque, which was cashed three days ago. This has been a shit show of an autumn and I am worn out, and have limited resources to throw at this, and am open to hearing 'that sucks but let it go' if you feel it is unlikely that anything will come of pursuing things here.
Best answer: When you get it replaced have the new plumber write an assessment of the previous plumber's work (make this conditional on hiring the plumber, pay the plumber separately for the assessment so you can claim that fee in small claims court). Draft a letter to the original plumber stating that you have a professional assent of their shoddy work and that you will be moving forward with a small claims court filing unless he contacts you via writing in seven days with a payment plan to repay the money you are out due to his negligence. Do you have someone that can help draft an unemotional, professional letter rather than paying your lawyer (or a paralegal would be cheaper...). Wait to hear back/seven days and then file your clim and keep everyone in your social circle/social media updated as to what is happening (again, keep it professional - you don't want any libel/slander charges from the plumber). As you are in a small town, word should get around and may exert pressure on him to settle. It sucks that you have to invest so much time, money and energy into this but it is what it is. Good luck!
posted by saucysault at 1:06 AM on November 23, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by saucysault at 1:06 AM on November 23, 2013 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
Beyond that, I'd suggest leaving candid feedback on various consumer websites - but as you're in Toronto, it doesn't look like any of the ones I'd suggest as a US-ian are there.
Sorry this happened. I'd suggest at least sending a letter demanding a refund and seeing what happens.
posted by arnicae at 7:51 PM on November 22, 2013 [1 favorite]